Actress ANUSHREE BATHLA

As a young dreamy-eyed girl from the sleepy coastal town of Veraval in Saurashtra, Anushree Bathla was intrigued by the sea. "I'd stand by the sea and wonder about how far the shore line stretched. Now that I'm in Mumbai I've started understanding vastness of the sea," says Bathla.

One could recall this vivacious girl from the popular ads-Bingo, Samsung, Will Lifestyle, Fiama Di Wills Shampoo or perhaps from the serial Main Aisi Kyun Hun on Sahara One. Bathla has also been a radio jockey before getting popular as 'Goldy', the typical Punjabi girl, in Sabki Laadli Bebo on Star Plus. Bathla remembers how unlike other gifts wrapped in beautiful paper, her cherished gift in life actually came wrapped in a soft-towel!

"Those innocent eyes, two small hands and a cute smile-my nephew (sister Tanu and brother-in-law, cricketer Nayan Mongia's son) was the best thing that could have happened to me. He made me feel lucky and blessed. I can never forget that moment when I first held him."

A gift of life is always special. For Bathla, it was more than that. "We are two sisters and having a baby brother was something I always desired. When my nephew was born, I felt my prayers were being answered. Just that it happened to be in the form of my nephew," she says.